Shadow: Tales of Heroes
by Hynoid.sNightmare
Summary: She didn't think she'd find someone willing to take in a fire-breathing scale-bag. She didn't expect to fight alongside the hero in red and blue. She didn't expect to catch the eye of a former villain returning from the grave. And she REALLY didn't expect to be part of a war for New York city. In retrospect, why wouldn't all this happen to an extra-ordinary teenager?
1. Chapter 1

She could hear footfalls crush the snow under them, edging closer and closer to the corner she was hiding behind. The darkness of the alley she had chosen gave her some comfort but it was simply too cold to let it warm her icy heart. A puff of warm breath rose from her lips. A cough accidentally tore from her throat, letting a cloud of ash and cinder into the atmosphere around her.

"Whoa!"

Her already ragged breathing hitched, heart coming to a stand still and allowing ice to creep further into her veins. All care about whether or not anyone had seen her sudden outburst suddenly thawed and melted away as a surprisingly well-muscled arm wrapped around her shoulders, pulling her close to an even more well-toned chest.

She really didn't care about that. The only thing taking up the brunt of her senses, was how pleasantly warm this man's body was. And it didn't even feel like he was wearing a woolly coat or jacket of any kind.

"What're ya doin out here all by yerself, kid?" Flint asked the young girl pressed up against him, a smile as warm as a Florida beach spanning his face. One good thing about having a body made completely out of silicon was the fact that it held in heat for **way** longer than a normal human body could.

The girl, seeming around 16 or so, glanced up at his face, still shivering like a leaf. He wasn't very surprised. He could feel how cold her skin was through the flimsy excuse for a hoodie she had on.

"N-Not much... besides freeze to death," she managed to splutter through chattering teeth. She pressed her own body even closer to his, trying to absorb as much heat as she possibly could.

"Where're your parents? Aren't they worried sick?"

The frown that's plastered itself across her face only deepened, head bowing ever so slightly but it was enough to answer Flint's question and tell him so much more. If the puff of smoke that flew from her mouth wasn't confirming his thoughts enough.

No one can inhale that much smoke, period, or even survive if they did. No one would like to have a "freak" as a kid either, that much he knew for sure.

"Come on, let's get you somewhere warm."

For the second time that night, her heart completely stopped, but instead of freezing her veins further, hope began to thaw her life's blood from the inside out. She looked up at the man with wide eyes, meeting his pleasant features.

Was this a dream?

Could this be a dream?

A chuckle made her ears light up like Christmas trees, gaze registering his lips moving at the sound. It suddenly came to her how goofy her face had to be, mouth slightly agape and eyes wide. She still didn't even know if he was simply taking advantage of a poor girl lost in this concrete jungle.

"You're... serious?"

"Course I am. Sure, the place I live ain't exactly for a kid but at least it's home," he was still smiling, standing from where he'd taken a seat next to her, tugging on her arm as a sign that she should do the same. His grip wasn't tight, nor forceful but surprisingly gentle for such an intimidating man.

Against her better judgement, she stood, letting him hold her close. She couldn't really complain, it was like having a permanent heater walking next to her.

"Oh yeah. Name's Flint. You got a name kid?"

"...Shadow. Just Shadow."


	2. Chapter 2

It was a tradition for parents to tell their children to not talk to strangers and always say "No" when they offered something no child could resist. Her parents were probably no different, if only fog didn't blanket that entire section of her memory.

Yet, she sensed a trustworthy aura from the man who now served as a constant source of heat by her side. If anything were to go wrong, her secret weapon would always be there, another side of her that would make all those who crossed her run in fear, cower behind what they hoped to be a source of safety, only to be proven wrong by a wave of pure heat aimed at them and them alone.

"You okay kid?"

"Hm?" her head tilted upward, catching Flint's dark gaze from where he towered over her. Speaking of the walking heater... "Oh yeah. Just, uh, stuck in dreamland. You know."

His laugh made her feel so safe. It's been years since she ever felt like she could trust someone to this degree, or even walk next to someone without that lingering fear of smoke escaping from her throat and scaring them off. Maybe he was keeping a secret himself, a secret he was afraid of letting out into the open.

"Not to complain or anything, but how far is your place again?"

"Just round the corner. If you wanna take a break, you can just ask."

She scoffed silently at this, not wanting to offend him for being so caring. Many people underestimated her endurance but it was always to mock her, until l they felt a whip pull their feet out from under them. It quickly became apparent that she was going to have a lot to get used to.

He was quickly getting the idea that Shadow wasn't very used to being handled with kid gloves. In reality, home base wasn't very far and before they knew it, they were standing right in front of it. It wasn't really much to look at, just an old building with wooden boards for a door.

"I can see what you meant when you said this place isn't exactly kid-friendly," Shadow remarked from beside him, eying the wooden planks from her spot on the sidewalk. "You gonna break the door down?"

Her sense of humor was still intact at least. A chuckle escaped his throat before he stepped up to the make-shift door, "No problamo. Ye might wanna take cover for this one."

That thrill he always got from using his powers was becoming a drug, he had to admit. One other good thing about silicon: a couple days and sheer willpower, and he could become anything he wanted to. A mace for smashing things into oblivion wasn't out of the question either.

Wood splintering and giving way soon rung into the frigid night, planks being broken in half and tossed aside to make enough room for both of them to at least squeeze through. He didn't need much room, he could fit anywhere. Shadow seemed skinny enough but the thought of her clothes maybe getting hooked up on a loose plank was something he didn't want in his mind.

Seeing that it was stuck there at the moment, the rest of his body soon dissolved and slipped through the massive void left in the door, reforming seconds later and motioning for his companion to come on through. She blinked at least three times before shaking her head furiously, mess of auburn and maroon being whipped back and forth by the motion, before a smirk crossed her face and she accepted his invitation. In honesty, he had to do a double take.

Her hands touched the cool floor, the rest of her body slithering through and swiftly ending the motion by landing on her haunches. She pushed herself up with ease, dusting down her jacket of any dust that might've slipped onto it. Upon noticing his agape face, an apologetic smile crossed her's, shrugging her shoulders.

"Too much?"

He had to pick his jaw up from off the floor before he could answer, but gave her a smirk, ruffling her hair. "I've seen worse. Wonder if O'hirn's here and not smashing something."

"Who?"

"Alex O'hirn. My buddy in crime, literally. Ya might be a bit freaked when ya see him but he's a big softy round kids."

She smirked in thought, already imagining what this Alex O'hirn might look like. All expectations were soon erased, pushed down into her subconscious and practically drowned by the animal hidden there. Life on the street had already taught her to not expect anything, even the unexpected. It had saved her life many times before.

A rumbling snore suddenly rung in her ears, making a shiver rush down her spine, hands shooting up to the sides of her head until she could get used to it. Flint heard it too, but he didn't seem as bothered as she was. He seemed more concerned about her reaction to it than the sound itself.

"Sensitive ears?"

"Yes!" Was all she could manage, yanking her hands away from her ears to shake her head, clearing out the constant ringing.

"Eh, you'll get used to it. His snoring's nough to wake the neighborhood."

The motions Flint made with his hands for emphasis made her giggle before she watched after him as he exited to another room, his hand catching the door frame to glance back at her.

"Just gonna go check if there's anything left for ya to eat. So long as O'hirn didn't clear out what was left."

He disappeared, leaving her with the notion that Alex was a big guy with an even bigger appetite. All the while, the snoring continued, making her glance the way of it's origin. Curiosity beginning to take the fore-front, her feet moved to their own accord, moving her body forward. A sudden ache in her back made her flinch, as if something was yearning to be free and not cramped up beneath her skin. Looking around to make sure Flint was busy, she arched her back to set her limbs free.

Two crimson wings unfurled through nearly invisible slits in her clothes, limb and skin being stretched out, joint after joint popping back into place. The furry flame of her tail silently splayed out on the floor, lazily dragging itself to sway back and forth behind her.

She yawned, only then realizing how tired she was as her wings folded against her back, dragging her feet in trying to find a place to curl up for the night.

* * *

"Nope," Flint said aloud as he opened every cupboard door he could find. Shadow was a skinny little kid, barely filling out the oversize hoodie and ragged jeans she wore, which couldn't even keep the poor kid warm. What's worse, having a kid who needs to eat a lot and a friend who eats a lot under one roof really was going to be a problem. He finally sighed, slamming a door shut and walking back to where he'd left her.

"Erm, Shad... I might have ta- Shad!?"

She was gone.

Nothing seemed to have really been disturbed, besides the massive hole in the make-shift door. He kept looking, subconsciously walking towards the snoring O'hirn. Finally turning the corner and catching sight of the sleeping behemoth, he felt his jaw hit the floor for the second time that snowy night.

Laying curled up on Rhino's stomach, eyes closed and breathing eased out, was a sleeping Shadow. His gaze trailed along the curled tail round her body, wings folded tightly as a make-shift blanket. Alex mumbled something in his sleep, stifling a yawn before going right back to dreamland.

Flint finally smirked, eying the smaller form as said smirk turned to a smile. This is definitely one extra-ordinary kid.


	3. Chapter 3

This was the life she'd always dreamed of, even if it was only for a night or two. Living on the streets was rough, especially from September through February, when the seasons began to change. At least she didn't have to awaken to snowflakes tickling her snout or the winter cold chilling her to the bone. No one was threatening her with a knife to the throat either.

"What the heck!?"

Spoke too soon.

Her eyes shot open, pupils dilating and narrowing, snapping to attention to stare into the deep pools of chocolate which were now as wide as plates.

* * *

Alex felt his jaw hit the floor. Having fallen asleep on his stomach, now staring at him with blazing flares, was a surprisingly young kid. A slender tail uncurled from her skinny form, two crimson wings opening from around her and folding again against her back.

They stared at each other for what felt like an hour, neither daring to speak a word. Finally, she decided to move, unfurling her wings and letting them flap once, twice. Her tail whipped back and forth behind her before she met his gaze once again.

"I'd better move," she thought aloud, using her wings to propel herself forward, landing a foot or so from him and twirling round in one motion to face him again. She watched, body low to the floor as he himself stood, hands up as if he was a wrestler in the ring.

"The heck are ya doin' here kid?"

She arched her back, tail whipping back threateningly as her wings tilted slightly, stretching out as far as they could in an attempt to make herself look far more intimidating. Looking the brute of a man up and down, she silently contemplated whether or not to go on the offense or to talk it out. In honesty, her subconscious practically screamed at her that words weren't going to do anything. Then again, don't knock it till you try it.

"Erm... Flint brought me here? He's a pretty good guy, got me out of the cold, you know."

"That it."

That statement made a shiver rush down her spine as if she'd been drenched in a bucket of ice water. His voice was enough to make you turn tail and run, just imagining him when he was angry made her claws unsheathe themselves and dig into the floorboards. Those claws kept her from scurrying up the wall when he suddenly took a thundering step forward. Gulping down the lump in her throat, she readjusted herself so that she was sitting on her haunches, lifting her upper-body so that her arms were prompted to dangle in front of her.

He was standing right in front of her... before suddenly scooping her up in a massive bear-hug.

"Well... a friend a Flint's is a friend a mine."

Breathing a sigh of relief, she felt the tension roll off her shoulders, resting her head against the giant's shoulder. Then there was her next problem: the fact that she couldn't breathe.

"Thanks O'hirn. But... can't... breathe..." she finally managed to wheeze.

"O'hirn, put the kid down already," Flint said from the doorway. Trying to turn and accidentally bumping her head against Alex's horn, making her wince and grit her teeth, she noticed the sandman leaning against the door frame. She didn't really know whether to be relieved or ticked at the smug grin dancing on his face. "She's turnin blue in the face."

Finally, O'hirn let go. A yip sneaked from her throat when she ended up tail first on the floor, groaning in annoyance and rubbing her back. It all disappeared when a plastic bag was suddenly placed in her lap. Her eyes widened in disbelief when she ruffled through the contents, sorting through the large amounts of salty and sweet treats.

"You did **not**!"

"Gotta get some meat on those bones somehow."

"Ey! What about me?" Alex chipped in, pointing to himself for emphasis. Flint merely gave a playful eye roll in response. "You cleared out the place. Don't tell me you're still hungry."

"Ah, come on!"

Shadow smirked silently, picking her present from her lap and sticking her snout back into the banter, "It's okay guys, really. I won't mind sharing with... Alex, right?"

"Shads, what ya been eaten out on the street anyway?"

"Wait, what's er name?"

"Shadow," she and Flint surprised each other by answering at once, glancing at each other in surprise. Her amber eyes shot skyward, "Yeah boy... this might take a while."

* * *

"Woah-woah-woah, hold the phone! You were out on the streets for **how** long!?"

Holding her hand up to give herself a chance to chew, Shadow swallowed another handful of chips, taking a few gulps of water to answer without a scratchy throat, "A couple years. Only way I've managed to keep track was by watching the seasons go by. Soon as winter came along," she snapped her fingers for emphasis, "Found a good place to curl up and slept untill the first day of spring."

"Why ya not asleep now? Ya'll end up a scale-cicle out there," Rhino chimed in. Much like she'd promised, she'd given half the bag of stolen goodies to him. It was the only reason why he was chowing down on a bag of Doritos right about now. Her back nearly collided with the floor from laughing her head off when she told them that she'd never had chips before, only the cheese curls kind, who someone had given her out of the kindness of their heart. Alex had stuck his tongue out, commenting that they didn't taste as good as Doritos did. One thing led to another, and soon the two were squabbling over which chip company was better.

"Some jerk decided that a kid trying to catch a cat-nap was an easy target."

" _Buuuuut_ , ya proved em wrong."

Flint looked the teen up and down. It took some convincing but he and Alex finally managed to convince her to transform into what she really looked like. Having shown them her wings, tail and claws, she didn't feel like her life would be endangered by two men who were giving her a roof over her head and protection from the New York winter.

Their jaws had dropped, to put it lightly.

Now she sat on the floor in front of them both, covered from head-to-toe in dark rust colored scales, telling them what she could remember about her life thus far.

"Let's just say he'll need a new pair of pants after I seared them to his ass."

Rhino whistled, "So, what? Ya can breathe fire?"

A smirk crossed the young dragon's face. She took in a deep breath, holding it for a few seconds, before letting it out in a quick burst. Instead of a small puff due to the cold, a small explosion of red hot fire escaped from her mouth, dissolving into cinders as it traveled upwards toward the ceiling.

She was never going to seize to amaze either of them.

"Whoa... Kid, that was awesome!"

"You should see when I use flamethrower. I think I came close to burning down half a city block the last time I used it," she smirked again, raising the water bottle to her lips to take another sip. Yet she had to stop herself from back washing at Flint's wide-eyed expression. "Don't worry. I won't dare use it indoors."

"Phew."

"Outdoors... that's another story."

All three looked up in surprise when a knock suddenly rang from the door. Flint and Alex glanced at each other and nearly felt their spines freeze other when a familiar voice was accompanied by footsteps.

"Yo! Alex! Flint! You two in here!"

Whatever was left in her bottle soon found itself spilled over the floor. Without even thinking, her instincts kicked in and she high-tailed it, frantically searching for anywhere she could hide from this uninvited guest. Flint felt his heart in his throat, looking in the direction she'd ran, hoping against hope that she'd managed to find a place to hide. To his relief, she'd somehow managed to disappear.

"Guys!" Electro called again, rounding the corner before noticing them both, chatting about a baseball game as if he hadn't scared them to death. "Geez, what're you two, deaf?"

"Ey Sparks," Flint greeted, tossing a bag of chips towards him while giving him the heads up. "Catch!"

He managed to catch it, recoiling in surprise but didn't drop it either. A smirk crossed the living battery's face, letting the bag pop open and helping himself to a few handfuls.

" _Mmmm..._ Thanks. You guys stocking up for the season?"

"Nah. You know O'hirn. Clears out a grocery store and still hungry."

"Yeah- wait, hey!"

Electro chuckled at the behemoth's annoyed recoil.

"Yeah right. Just comin to check if you two wanna come over to my place. Gets kinda lonely up in the apartment."

"No prob. I've wanted to smash somethin fer a while," a very ominous grin crossed O'hirn's face at the thought of hitting something. He was already on his feet, slamming his fist into his open palm and cracking his knuckles. Flint, on the other hand, wasn't as eager to get up. His mind constantly flicked back to the rusty dragon, wondering what she would be doing when they weren't around.

"Ey Flint. You okay?"

"Huh? Yeah... couldn't be better."

He had to force a smirk, getting up with the bag in his grip. Electro only shrugged at the comment, dismissing it as nothing and heading for the door, Rhino and Sandman in tow. Flint gave a glance over his shoulder, wondering where Shadow had went, and left with his two companions.


	4. Chapter 4

Some of the ancient plaster began to flake from the ceiling. Minutes later, entire sections came loose and Shadow plummeted to the floor with a yelp. A groan escaped her scaled throat, pushing herself to her clawed feet and stretching her limbs, smiling contently as she heard every joint pop back into place. Dusting down her clawed hands, she wasted no time in scurrying out the hole Flint had made the night before.

The early morning sun forced her to squint her eyes but it and the chilly morning air was soon forgotten as the rays soaked into her skin. She shook her head, soon scaling the wall of the abandoned building to situate herself on the roof. Throwing her legs over the edge, rest of her body following suit, she happily stretched out her nearly seven foot long body to bask in the invited sunshine.

"Wonder what Flint and Alex are doing right now," she thought aloud, taking a deep breath and closing her eyes with a smile.

* * *

Rhino held his stomach, his laugh echoing through the empty halls of the apartment building. Electro wasn't very bothered, he himself laughing at what was transpiring on the screen in front of the three men. Flint was the only one not smiling or making comments. His thoughts were already on a rocket ship to the moon, wondering what Shadow was keeping herself busy with.

What if Doc decided to hold another meeting about their next move?

He'd send someone over to where he and Alex held up, most likely Vulture and/or Kraven. A "few years" out on the streets would have taught her a lot, and considering what she could have gone through, total strangers showing up on their doorstep would be an immediate red flag. By everything she'd done and managed to do in the past, she wasn't going to give up without one hell of massive brawl.

"Sandman?"

Shaking his head, Flint scratched the back of his neck in annoyance, glancing at Electro with a raised brow.

"What? I miss somethin?"

"Besides half the game. What's up with you buddy?"

"Ah, just worried bout the kid, at's all," Alex muttered, gulping down the rest of his soda. Silicon particles in his body began to heat up before he elbowed the larger man in the side but he simply shrugged it off. He didn't even seem to have any idea of what he'd just said.

Electro however raised a brow, "What kid?"

* * *

Sunbathing was fun and all but there was one part of her body that still hadn't gotten a proper workout: her wings. Hearing the melodious flap of her appendages while keeping herself airborne was one of the few things that rid her of her troubles. That, and looking down upon the city streets and casting a shadow over the mid-morning traffic. In short, she was free.

The beat of her wings began to pick up pace, angling her body upwards before her claws curled round a flagpole. Everyone was oblivious to the scaled creature resting above their heads and she planned on keeping it that way. A sigh escaped her lips, leaning back slightly and letting her arms rest on her knees.

Who was that guy who came to get Flint and Alex this morning? Whoever, he was, he scared the everliving daylights out of her. Judging by how Flint acted towards him, it didn't seem like he presented much of a danger. If he was dangerous then they wouldn't have gone with him in the first place, right?

"Stop! Thief!"

A guttural growl of frustration rumbled from her throat at that all too familiar tune, glaring down at the pedestrians below to see who had ruined her day. Sure enough, there he went with a woman's purse but his method of travel peeked her attention. He wasn't running like any ordinary lowlife, he was... jumping?

Scratching her head in confusion, she shook it off before letting herself fall back. Her tail curled tightly round her perch, swinging up on her own momentum and doing an aerial somersault, spreading her wings and taking off.

The moron was fast, she had to give him that, even at the speed she was going. Granted, the icy New York winter was slowing her down. Tucking her wings behind her scaley back, her streamlined form quickly dipped into a dive, amber orbs locked only on the leaping villain.

"In-coming!"

Even his jumping speed couldn't match her's as the tell-tale **crack!** of two bodies colliding rang through the air. Both collided hard with the concrete, yelping and groaning loudly at the constant pain running through their forms. Shadow was first to recover, claws shooting out and digging deep grooves into the street to bring her to a stop. She growled, glaring up at the man as he also managed to stand, much shakier than her at least, but he was fast to recover upon noticing exactly who'd attacked him.

"Sacre bleu! Who is this new do-gooder, ah?"

"Oh joy. What, France run out of purse's to steal," she muttered lowly as a comment towards the man's accent, rubbing her wrist as if it was busted during her unintended landing. It was going to be bruised a bit the next morning, but at least having bullet-proof scales had other advantages.

"Oh no-no-no, mon amie!" He launched himself onto the roof of a car, "But my work is so much easier ere, no?"

A growl escaped the teen's throat, yet a smirk suddenly spread across her face. Her head reared back, taking in a deep breath... before a stream of blood red fire raced towards him. The man was so startled that he lost his footing, falling from the car before the flames could incinerate him, rolling away furiously to not be lapped at by the raging inferno.

She was on him in seconds, pouncing with her claws out and a loud roar. He screamed, rearing back before a firm double-kick collided with her snout. A roar pierced the air, hitting the ground hard.

"Hahaha! This is fun, no," the Frenchman laughed, having leaped back to his feet with the stolen purse still in hand. "You very good at ze rough housing."

"Grrr... I'll show you rough housing," Shadow growled in defiance, standing and clenching her fists but her amber eyes suddenly caught movement behind her opponent. Someone suddenly cheered at the top of their lungs, a double-kick colliding with the man's chin by the time he was able to turn round. She smirked, spinning round and letting her tail crack like a whip upon giving him a good smack in the face.

His head collided with a lamp post and was knocked out cold, allowing the gathered police to take him into custody.

"Well, I wasn't expecting him to put up much of a fight but at least Batroc's less of a pain than what I usually have to deal with."

Dusting off her claws and resting them on her hips, Shadow glanced up at who was addressing her. She felt her eyes widen when she saw who was her unexpected team-up buddy.

"Spider-man!?"

Sure enough, the red and blue clad web-slinger soon hung eye-level with her, a smirk forming behind his mask.

"By the way, you **are** pretty good at rough-housing."

"Well," she thought for a moment, glaring at the man Spidey had called Batroc. The latter was being hauled off by police. Only when the police-van doors closed behind him did she look back at Spider-man. "I don't really take compliments from super villains."

"I-.. don't think Batroc really counts as a super villain but okay. So, you wanna hang out or something? Doesn't look like you have anything better to do."

Her chin rested of her hand as she averted her gaze. She still didn't know when Flint and Alex would be back, or what those two morons were even doing at the moment. She glanced at Spider-man in thought.

"Alright. Guess it can't hurt. So long as we swing by my friends' place every once and a while. They don't really know I'm standing here right now."

"Deal."

* * *

As expected, they'd spent the rest of the day discussing Flint and Alex's little secret, which they'd only manage to keep for half a day. The entire street was already illuminated by street lights by the time they were heading home, a curious Electro in tow.

"You guys are seriously telling me that she's an overgrown lizard?"

"Not **just** any other lizard... you'll see when ya see er," Flint explained for what felt like the 50th time that day. "Just eh, be careful. She might be a bit... jumpy."

The living battery quirked a brow at the warning, "How jumpy?"

"A lot," Rhino muttered as they came up to the hide-out. "Got a bad temper too."

Flint looked around with his hands on his hips, raising them to his face to amplify his voice.

"Shadow! Ey Shads! You round here?"

"Ain't she inside."

"What makes you think a kid like 'er would've stayed cooped up in there all day."

"Maybe she's sleepin'."

"Sleeping? Why'd she be asleep?"

The two brunts glanced back at the third wheel but before Flint could get a word out of his mouth, a gust of wind suddenly blew against his back. Electro's gaze had shifted from them and was now staring straight ahead. Sandman had to guess that if he wasn't wearing that rubber mask, his jaw would be on the floor.

"I'm guessing he's with you guys, so..."

Sure enough, the rusted dragon was right behind them, wings in the process of folding themselves against her back. Her tail flicked back and forth, thin yet muscular arms folded across her chest as she glared straight at Electro.

"See."

Rhino huffed, rolling his eyes in mock-annoyance. Electro was still staring at her in disbelief, scanning the girl up and down with his widened blue eyes. He first thought that Flint and O'hirn were exaggerating when they said that this kid had a weird power but this was beyond weird.

"She's a... dragon?"

"Dragons are really that rare in New York."

"Yes," all three men said at once, even though she meant it more as a statement then a question. She huffed, uncrossing her arms to let them rest at her sides. The living battery glanced at the two who knew her the best thus far, seeing them either smiling or smirking at her. Then he saw something, or someone, swinging from building to building, leaving the scene of the foursome. He'd recognize that blue and red costume anywhere.

"Spider-man!" he suddenly snarled, making Sandman and Rhino whirl round on him. "What's he doing here!?"

"What?" Shadow snarled at his harsh tone, "We just hung out for a while. What's so bad about that?"

"You what!?" Electro and Rhino exclaimed, making Flint throw up his hands in defense, as if to block the sound of them hollering at her. She however stood firm, glaring the two down with enough intensity to compensate for them both. Her glare was almost as hot as her flames

"Come on guys, ease off," Flint made himself heard, stepping between the three and taking the brunt of their glares. "So, she hung out with the guy. It's not like they made out or somethin."

An audible "ew" sounded behind him, her head popping over his shoulder with a look of disgust, "I **am** here, you know."

"So? She's gonna be a goodie-two-shoes boy scout like him someday. Just watch!" Electro snarled, electricity growing stronger as his temper skyrocketed.

"What do you guys care anyway? Are you guys super villains or something!?"

Everyone went silent. Realization hit the three like a ton of bricks.

She didn't know who they were. She didn't know that they were members of the Sinister Six. For all she knew, they were simply like her: different from everyone else, trying to stay under the radar. If she eventually put two and two together, they were going to be in for a world of unbelievable hell.

And thanks to tonight, that future may be more imminent than they hoped.


	5. Chapter 5

Tensions in the hideout have been high for the last month.

Her suspicions were being roused more and more as time went on, especially when Flint and Alex would both leave for some reason or another. Not that they were going to tell her where they were going, especially Alex. Whenever he'd glare at her, the fire in her eyes would blaze alive and glare right back. If Flint wasn't there, she was sure he'd demolish the whole city if it meant pounding her into a pulp.

It just so happened to be one of those nights but even the rhythmic beat of her wings didn't manage to quell her rushing thoughts. Nights like these made her wish that Spidey was close by to amuse her with his sarcastic quips or opinions on super villains. It wasn't like he'd always be there to get her out of tight spots, but she didn't want it to be that way either.

If she had to be completely honest with herself, Spider-man had become something of a mentor to her. While she wasn't going to fight crime on a daily basis like he did, she was considering it. There was only the matter of how Flint and Alex would take it.

"Nyahahahahahahaha!"

An ear piercing laugh suddenly rung out from above her, only giving her a few seconds to look up before literally having to duck and dive for it. Something flew right over her head, leaving behind a trail of smoke that nearly choked her. Her eyes stung as she glared after whoever had nearly flew her out of the sky before flapping her wings roughly and taking off after him.

"Hey!" she roared loudly over the hum of the engine of whatever he was driving. "Mind explaining why you nearly bowled me over!?"

The same insane giggle she'd heard before rang in her ears, at a much higher volume, before she was once again forced into evasive maneuvers. He was right next to her now and she felt her eyes widen.

"Oh? And how was I supposed to grab your attention."

He took off again, leaving her in a cloud of smoke. A groan escaped her throat, taking off after him.

One thing was certain: this guy knew how to drive that thing. He did so many complicated dives, climbs and other aerial tricks that it was becoming a pain in her tail keeping up with him. Her blood began to boil a couple of times during the chase, when he'd glance over his shoulder and smirk at her.

"That's it!" Shadow roared upon noticing they were coming up to Times Square, "You're smoked meat glider-boy!"

Smoke and ash began to trail from the corners of her mouth before a blast of blood red fire flew at him. Her jaw dropped when he managed to dodge, the ball of fire hitting the mega screen instead. Electricity and fire mixed in an explosion, shards of glass raining down on civilians below.

She groaned loudly in annoyance at herself. After making sure everyone below was alright, she quickly ascended above the city streets.

He was gone!

"Damn it!" she cursed loudly, looking left and right to try and find her target. It was no use...

Until a loud whistle caught her attention. Focusing her amber eyes in the direction of the sound, she took off, gracefully landing before the costumed man. Hovering at the edge of the roof, he looked down at her with that all knowing smirk.

"Quite a temper you have there, little girl."

"Shut it!"

Now she was mad.

"You nearly knocked me out of the sky! ...Who the hell are you?"

"Oh, just a little birdie. Taking notice of your... predicament."

What was this Sunday driver talking about? The thought of Rhino and Sandman weren't crossing her mind. It wasn't relevant and not this dumbass' business anyway. The last thing she wanted to do was ask advice from a lunatic.

"Humor me..." she groaned, crossing her arms. He was crouched on one knee, that dumb smirk still on his face. At the moment, she badly wanted to slam her fist into his face. "If you're planning to give me advice, save it! I'm perfectly happy dealing with this on my own."

The smirk stayed in it's place, growing into a grin. Her eyes narrowed suspiciously, watching as his hand moved from his temple to his chest as he spoke.

"Is that coming from your head... or your heart?"

She quirked a brow. This guy was giving her riddles, which was worse than advice. Before she could even question him about what he meant, the masked... goblin... laughed, taking off before she could even get a word out. Questions forgotten, Shadow quickly rushed to the edge, not bothering to unfurl her wings to take off after him.

Shaking her head in defeat, her wings unfurled from her back and she took off. Back home... or what she hoped was home.

* * *

He watched her fly away from a safe distance.

Her body language may not have shown it, and she was probably going to kick herself if it did, but she was spooked. The gleam in her amber eyes showed it. Focusing his attention elsewhere, he was just in time to see Spider-man swinging from building to building on his own path.

Lucky him to now have two superheroes as help. One just had to be steered on the right path to keep her as far away from the enemy's claws as possible.

As for Spider-man.

He hated the wall-crawler since his father's death, but now, he was going to need all the help he could get.

* * *

Only after she arrived at the boarded up front door did she realize how tired and sore she was. That city-wide chase had wasted more energy than she had hoped. Nothing a few hours of sleep won't fix.

Wriggling through the hole in the wooden boards, her eyes scanned the room cautiously. Familiar scents reached her nostrils, flaring with every sniff, but one scent stood out. It was foreign, strange and strong.

Bang!

Her snout suddenly collided with the floor, head throbbing and vision blurring to the point where she couldn't see a thing. She only managed to look up for a few seconds, seeing an unfamiliar shadow before everything was swallowed by it.

* * *

Her head was searing with pain, she couldn't even focus her sight correctly. One thing she was aware enough to realize was that she was no longer a dragon, and too dazed to connect with that part of her subconscious. Which, in turn, meant that she couldn't summon the strength to break the bonds her hands were tied with. Lowering her head to the concrete, she closed her eyes again.

"Sorry kid. Didn't mean te get ya involved in this."

That wasn't Flint or O'hirn's voice, if that Southern drawl wasn't enough of an indicator. Growling, her center of gravity shifted to glare in the direction of the voice. He who spoke was male with a strange power-suit covering the entirety of his body.

"Grrrr... who are you!?" she roared angrily, fingers beginning to sharpen to silver points. "Where's Flint and Al- **eeeeeeeeexs!** "

A pained scream suddenly tore through her throat, electricity arching through her body. Her claws didn't have time to properly form, rounding again before the torture finally ended. She groaned in pain, resting her head back on the concrete, yet her glare at the Southerner didn't weather.

"Oh yeah. About that, I wouldn't try changin if I were ya."

"You didn't answer... my question," she hissed through her teeth, "Where... are they!?"

Her mind was already painting a smirk on the face under the mask, "The're fane. Be more concerned bout yerself, missy."

He turned on his heel to leave, the agitated hiss from behind his back not fazing him at all. Taking a deep breath, her pounding heart began to slow it's pace to a less worried tone, rolling onto her back and staring at the ceiling.

Great!

No one knew she was there. Not Flint, not Alex and not Spider-man either. What's worse, she couldn't use her powers and break out herself, not if she wanted to be knocked unconscious again. Turning her head slightly and noticing a window, a thought edged it's way into her attention span.

If the masked man she'd met earlier that night knew about her problems with her two friends, he must've been following her. As disturbing as the possibility was, she couldn't help but hope. Could he still have followed her, even after their conversation?


	6. Chapter 6

At the moment, life as Peter Parker sucked!

He'd broken up with Liz Allen a few hours before the demise of Norman Osborn, only to have Gwen Stacey change her mind for Harry's sake. What was worse, the prominent business man's death was his fault. Now the consequences of his decisions have come back to haunt him.

Even without the Green Goblin, he still had to deal with a plethora of super villains, old and new. At least there was some light at the end of this tunnel: a rust colored lizard whose name would be misleading if it wasn't for her title.

Shadow, the Fire Dragon.

Peter swung round the corner of a building, situating himself on the roof where no one could notice. He looked left, then right, then left again, scratching his head in thought afterward.

"Hm, speaking of Shads. I haven't seen er all night."

While the winged teen wasn't the type to spend all her time around people, he'd at least see her hanging around Times Square when the sun was at it's highest. Heck, he'd even seen her flying over Midtown High from time-to-time. It wasn't like her to just disappear into thin air.

A plume of smoke suddenly appeared out of the corner of his eye, interrupting his train of thought entirely. Looking over, he felt his heart plummet to his toes.

"No way... it couldn't be..."

Letting a string of webbing situate itself against a building close by, he swung across the city in hot pursuit, all the while hearing his subconscious scream at him.

It just couldn't be the Goblin. The Green Goblin was dead.

He was there when Norman crashed into the rigged water tower. The pumpkin bomb he'd stuck to the maniac's glider was the entire reason for it. There was no way possible that the man could still be alive. If he had to be honest with himself, he hoped that he **was** dead.

Swinging faster and faster, Spidey finally groaned in frustration when he was forced to halt on the roof of a warehouse. Who he thought was his worst enemy had disappeared into thin air. Was his imagination playing tricks on him?

"I sure hope so," he muttered under his breath, ready to swing away again. Until a loud roar of pain and agony made him stop dead in his tracks, a shiver rushing down his spine at the sheer volume. Quickly crawling down the wall, he found a murky window he could look through and peered inside the dark structure.

* * *

Was it worth a shot? Absolutely not!

Panting loudly at the strain the electricity was putting on her body, she rolled onto her back to try and take in more air. The fact that she was sweating by the bucket-full didn't help her situation either. Groaning, she laid her head back on the concrete floor.

Shadow let her head lull to the side, closing her eyes to focus all her attention on her breathing. This was the third time she tried to transform, mentally digging her claws into the hope that these cuffs would give way. Yet, fate was being fickle today. Focusing on trying to break her bonds also meant that the hope someone was going to come to her rescue was fading faster than ever.

Until it was jolted past all other hope and into reality by a gentle grip on her shoulder. Opening her amber orbs, she looked up and into the reflective lenses of none other than her closest friend, making a smile light up her sweat covered face.

"Spider-man!" she breathed.

"The one and only."

She was already imagining a smile under that red mask. Quickly rolling back onto her side to show him the cuffs, a wave of relief washed over her when he broke them in half with ease.

"I'm guessing you aren't here to get out of the cold?" he said aloud as he helped her to her feet. Smiling at the fact that he could still be making jokes at a time like this, she merely shook her head.

"Wish I was," she muttered, "Some guy knocked me out and brought me here. Just don't ask why."

"Okay, I won't. Come on, let's get you somewhere safe."

"Well boys, looks like we got a fox after the hen."

Both spun round in surprise, only to be thrown halfway across the floor by what felt like a sonic blast. She groaned aloud but regretted the notion at the constant ringing in her ears. Managing to look up, a blaze erupted in her eyes at seeing the battle suit wearing man, and this time, he wasn't alone.

"Dah man, you guys again," Spidey complained as he pushed himself to his hands and knees, "Tombstone back in business already?"

"There's a new big man in town, son," the man in a red and yellow quilted suit sneered, raising a hand mounted blaster at them, "Not that ya'll be alive for too long te meet em."

Before she was even able to register what was going on, a firm grip was locked around her mid-section and swung away from an incoming sonic blast. He put her down outside the line of fire, close to a way out of this mess.

"Get somewhere safe. I can handle these three."

"No way in hell!" she interjected immediately, firmly grabbing onto his shoulder, "Once a team, always a team Spider."

"What're you...?"

Something rammed into the due, sending them skidding across the floor and right through the back door. Shadow groaned, shaking her head furiously as she got to her feet. Looking over, she took notice that Spidey managed to get to his feet as well. Quickly grabbing onto her arm, he drug her behind a few boxes and crates, just as the three men exited the building as well.

"Ricochet, head round back. Ox, circle round. The're round ere somewhere."

Ox, Ricochet? Seeing the directions they were heading, it was a bit obvious who was who at this point. The only one who's name eluded her was the trigger happy cowboy who was heading to the North side. A tug on her shoulder brought her back down to the boy keeping low next to her.

"Look, kid. I don't know what you're doing, but you have to get out of here."

"No!" she snarled under her breath, "I still want payback for getting knocked out anyway."

"...Okay, fine. How exactly are you going to do that?"

She glared at him before pressing her back firmly against the crates, clenching her fists. Heat began to sizzle through her body, a halo of fiery energy forming round her waist, splitting in two and moving up and down her form.

* * *

Peter's eyes widened behind his mask.

The girl's skin and clothes were soon replaced by rusty scales, claws forming from her fingers and toes once the energy passed over them. Horns soon formed on her head before the halo disappeared, fiery hair having disappeared when her face lengthened to a snout filled with razor bladed teeth. The lowest halo had disappeared once it reached the tip of her whip-like tail.

"Shadow," he managed to breathe after finding his voice. She threw that all too signature smirk at him, pupils bulging behind her narrowed lids.

"The one and only."

"Erm... you sure your head isn't...?"

 **Kabang!**

Splinters and scraps of wood rained down on them both, forcing the due to cover their heads with their hands... and claws. A guttural growl ripped from Shadow's throat, taking a peek from their spot to see if she can't get a chance to hit back. They had to scramble in the opposite directions when their cover was reduced to smouldering rubble.

Spider-man swung round in record time but was practically thrown out of the sky when another sonic blast cut straight through his webbing.

"Whoa!"

* * *

She lowered her horns as she darted for him, aiming for his abs to try and ram him. Yet, before she could even come within a foot of connecting with him, his attention suddenly shifted to her and she was thrown back by a sonic blast. A sharp pain suddenly ripped through her side, making a roar of pain rip through the air, skidding to a halt at the wall-crawler's feet.

"Ow..."

"Just make it easier on yerselves and give up ombre's."

"Give and up? Those are two words that should never be next to each other," Spidey shot back, giving Shadow a hand up from under her scaled arms.

"If it was ever in my vocab, I wouldn't be here," she growled lowly, meeting Shocker's cocky glare head on. Ox and Ricochet also heard the commotion, considering the latter was the one to nearly break her ribs.

"It's about te be..."

A growl rippled from her throat, deepening into a roar as she charged for them at top speed. Ox was ready and waiting, copying her notion for a head on collision. Focusing on the remaining two, Shocker's blasters were quickly clogged up with webbing before he could halt the raging dragon.

"What's a matter Shocky? All **blocked** up?"

Mentioned assassin growled lowly. Ricochet went on the offensive, shooting for Spider-man at top speed.

Meanwhile, Shadow slowed her pace at the last second, sliding right under the charging Ox. He skid to a halt, glaring back at her but lost his footing when her tail whipped back, pulling his legs right out from under him. About to get up, most of the air was knocked out of him when she crashed into his chest, heels first and with her full weight.

Hopping off and letting her hands and feet touch the concrete, she darted straight for Spider-man, who was still struggling with a very energetic Ricochet.

"Sheesh. How many cups of coffee did you have this morning Ricochet?"

"Spidey! Duck!"

He did as such, well, sort of. Shooting a web to a well positioned platform above their heads, he pulled himself up with ease. Ricochet shot right under him...

 **Whack!**

...right into the path of the she-dragon's curling tail. He was disorientated, crashing into a stack of crates standing close by. Glancing over her shoulder, her wings spread out just in time to propell her up and away from another sonic sound blast.

"You wanna hit first or should I?" Spider-man asked once she situated herself next to him.

"Light 'em up?"

"Light 'em up, Shads!"

A smirk found it's way onto her snout, wings spreading out and swooping down to the ground, aiming straight for Shocker. Swerving to the side, a sonic blast flew right past her before a stream of fire lit up the ground where the Southerner stood. It was only off by an inch or two but enough to shock him into disbelief.

"What the blue...!?"

His sentence was cut off, having to barrel roll to avoid the scaled beast's wings. The distraction served it's purpose, a thick net of webbing pinning him to a wall.

"Well, that was easy."

"Define easy."

"So, remind me again why you 'ombre's' were after my friend here?"

Shocker growled, glaring at the red and blue clad bug. Glancing at the dragon, his glare was only met by a blazing fire, carrying a warning of what would happen if he didn't spill the beans.

"We were 'ired to track down this kid. Said 'e didn't want 'er gettin in 'is way. Suprise, suprise, she just so 'appens to be deh scaled freak flyin' round New York!"

Four sharp, silver claws suddenly dug into the side of his neck, enraged amber orbs boring into his widened eyes. Jackson Brice wasn't the type to be scared of anything, even dying, but this kid's temper was worse than a Texas summer. Those eyes didn't even belong to a kid of 14.

"Shadow!" the spider exclaimed. Even he was surprised at the suddenness and ferocity of this advance. She growled lowly, lowering her claws back to her side.

"Come on," she growled again, turning and beginning to walk away, "Let's go."

"But, we still haven't found out who..."

"Do you want me to kill him or not!?"

Spider-man gulped, not at the fact that the words came as a roar, but the fact that Shadow's anger was suddenly directed at him. He formed a mental note to not question her when she seemed like a volcano getting ready to erupt. Glancing back at Shocker, he soon swung off. The she-dragon threw a glare over her shoulder as well, wings flaring and taking off, right as police cars stopped at the scene.

* * *

"What the heck was that!?"

If she had to be very honest with herself, she didn't know. Even worse, she didn't know how to answer to the skepticism now aimed at her. Coming from the one she was beginning to look up to no less.

She didn't answer, looking down past her mucky sneakers at the bustling New York street below. Spider-man stood just a foot or so behind her, hand on his hips as he looked at her back. He was just about to give up hoping for an answer when he heard her whisper under her breath.

"Sorry..."

"What?"

"I'm sorry," she repeated, shoulders beginning to sag even more, "I didn't mean to lose my temper like that. It's just... sometimes, it's all I can depend on to survive, you know."

His hands fell to his sides, sitting down next to her as he raised a hand to her shoulder. Her face turned to meet his, wondering if she should be imagining a smile behind his mask.

"It's okay. Having a bad temper isn't bad, so long as you're actively trying to control it."

It was her turn to smile, looking away from him and at the New York skyline. With all it's lights, it was a pretty strong contrast to the night sky above it. They sat in silence for what felt like hours, until Spider-man cleared his throat.

"So, you heading back to Sandman and Rhino's place?"

"Ghm, please," she scoffed, "Tension's been so thick that I could cut it with my claws."

Pushing herself to her feet, she turned on her heel and hopped off the ledge they were sitting on, hands stuffed into the pocket's of her hoodie. A sigh escaped her lips, tilting her head back in thought.

"Guess I'm sleeping in an alley tonight."

He was looking at her back but at least the lenses of his mask wouldn't give away his expression. The thought had been edging away at his conscious for weeks now but he just couldn't bring himself to say it out loud. Noticing the halo forming around her waist seemed to make up his mind for him.

"Come on. I know somewhere you can stay."


	7. Chapter 7

Oh how far did her jaw not drop when she laid eyes on the neighborhood Spidey led her to. Granted, she'd never had a nice warm room to sleep in overnight either, even if it wasn't her own. She'd never had this big of a smile painted across her face by day either.

"Yahoo-yeah!" Shadow roared at the top of her lungs, rushing across rooftops, swinging from flagpoles and lampposts and doing aerial tricks like nobody's business. Never had she ever been so full of energy, feeling it circulating through her horns down to the claws of her toes. She even went as far as to unleash a stream of fire into the chilled morning atmosphere.

Finally letting fatigue set in, she dug her claws into the side of a nearby building, just as Midtown High's school bell went off to signal the end of the school day. Changing to her less conspicuous base form, she dropped down from her perch, ignoring the surprised yelps of those passing by to jog over to the school.

While she wasn't particularly the type of homeless kid to hang around a school (really, who is?) she had a method to her madness. Said method being to tell her fellow superhero that he could have the night off. A thank you for giving her a place to stay for the next couple of days. Bless that boy.

"Lose something, messy?"

Shifting her gaze from the wooden double doors, eyes narrowing into a frown, she glared in the direction of the ear grating voice. No surprise, she spotted the two things that was most irritating about a high school: cheerleaders and football players. And here her day started off so well.

"There goes the neighborhood," she muttered under her breath, pushing herself away from the brick pillar and jabbing her fists into her pockets. "Be a little nicer and maybe I'll tell you."

One of the jocks, a boy with blonde hair and the uniform teal and white jacket, let out a bark of laughter. She really didn't know what was so funny, giving them the stone-cold poker face.

"She just asked what you're doing here. Shouldn't you be dumpster diving or something?"

Now all of them were either laughing or smiling. Until her fist suddenly connected with the blonde boy's jaw, grabbing him by the collar of his jacket before he could meet the concrete and slamming him back first against the second pillar of the archway. The entire group went silent, looking on in shock and horror as she glared at him with a fire in her eyes.

"Listen blockhead," she snarled darkly, grip on his jacket becoming tighter as she spoke. "Rule one of living on the street: **Don't** , throw insults around, if you can't take a **hit**!"

"Shadow!?" a familiar voice broke the silence. All eyes were still on her as she loosened her grip on the jock. Peter stood nearby, jaw on the floor as he looked on in shock. Two other teens stood behind him, in equal shock at what they were seeing.

One was a blonde, a girl with the common blue eyes of every light haired human being out there. She could easily be mistaken for a cheerleader, if only she was wearing the uniform. Her expression mimicked Peter's to a T: mouth open and eyes wide.

The second was another boy, this one with short red curls, much darker than her own and without the darker highlights that she had. He was gritting his teeth, shoulders hunched into his neck in a cringing motion.

"Erm, Shads," Peter broke the silence again. "Think you can..."

Glaring back at the blonde boy pinned to the wall, who was still frozen in fear at this sudden feat of strength, she promptly dropped him. Walking over to Peter and his friends, she turned on her heel just in time to see him scrambling away, trying to get as much distance between them as possible.

"Just came to say that Spidey can have the night off," she whispered to Peter. He gave her a look before she added, "If I see you tonight, I'll personally drag you back to your house."

* * *

Throwing another glare over her shoulder at Flash, she left without another word. A day wasn't going to be enough to curb that fiery temper. He was going to have to give her a hand with that over the next few days.

"S-she a friend ah yours, Parker?" Flash stuttered as he got to his feet. His hands were up in front of him as if Shadow was going to come out of no where and attack him again. What was even more surprising was the fact that he was rattling like a leaf.

"Yeah," he muttered sheepishly, scratching his head. "She's from the homeless shelter I volunteer at. Hottest. Temper. To date."

All eyes suddenly focused on him, making him throw up his hands in defense.

"She means well with it. She's actually really nice when you get to know her better," he quickly explained. Glancing behind him to see his friend's expressions, he was practically yearning to change the subject. He'd already explained to them how fierce Shadow could be but they probably never imagined it to be this bad.

"So, you guys wanna get a coffee or something? My treat."

"Oh, sorry Pete. I've still got studying to do. I'll see you guys tomorrow," Harry excused himself, taking a few steps back before turning to leave. Now he was making the excuses? What caught Peter's attention however, was the fact that his best friend was heading in the wrong direction.

"Erm, Harry," Gwen gave voice to their seemingly shared thoughts. "Isn't your house that way?"

That seemed to bring him back down to Earth, spinning on his heel and noticing the direction she was pointing to. Rubbing his neck sheepishly, he quickly dodged round them all, throwing another "See ya," to them both before disappearing round the corner. Peter watched after him before turning to Gwen.

"So, coffee?"

* * *

He wanted to see where she was going, weather or not she was going to change form and take off for another day of crime fighting. Of course, while trying to do that, he'd probably raised suspicious in 'forgetting' which way his house was. It wasn't really his house anymore, not since his dad's death.

Once the doors of the elevator opened, he rushed into the room and tossed his backpack on the couch. He pushed open the doors to his dad's former office, pressing the hidden button behind one of the many masks adorning the walls. A smile spread on his face, taking one of the vials of advanced Globulin Green from the hidden compartment. Right next to them was his nightly uniform.

Time for the Goblin to take flight.

* * *

That was the last time she even thought of setting foot near a school, and no one was going to convince her otherwise. What was worse, there wasn't a super villain out tonight whose teeth she could bash in. She'd even take Batroc for God's sake.

The only thing out tonight was the usual early evening traffic, and even **that** was beginning to give her a headache. Resting her arm on her knee, head on top of that, she couldn't do much else but watch her own reflection in the office windows opposite her perch. She suddenly quirked a brow.

"I can see your reflection too so you can drop the stealth."

"Daw," the maniac in green and purple mockingly complained. "And here I was hoping to surprise you."

"Try it, and you'll be off that glider faster than you can get off yourself."

She really wasn't in the mood for returning his good mood. His gate seemed to aggravate her even more: hands behind his back and that stupid smirk across his face. The fact that he was constantly looking at her just made her want to throw a fireball at him. Seeing the mega screen exploding was the only thing stopping her.

"What're you doing up here?" she finally growled, returning his gaze by tenfold. "Besides making my blood pressure skyrocket."

"Just coming to see how the Goblin's favorite little lizard is doing."

He spun his winged gargoyle round so that she was forced to stare into it's blood red eyes and fanged mouth. She clenched her fist in anticipation of breaking his jaw but forced herself to hold back. The temptation only became worse when he keeled onto one knee, still giving her that smug look.

"So, I believe you've already heard of this new 'Big man'?"

"Who wants to know," she hissed back, grinding her teeth together, fangs especially.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk. Oh how rude," he purred, standing straight with his hands on his sides. That snapped her last nerve. She shot up from her spot, wings flaring and ready to give him one hell of a piece of her mind, when the shrill cry of a fire siren suddenly pierced the night air.

Looking down, the red and blue lights of every little boy's dream raced by, an ambulance taking up the rear. Finally, something to take her mind off the events of the day. Even though it seemed like the usual burning building she'd seen over her first month as a vigilante hero.

"Well, while I'd love to have you tap dancing on my last good nerve," she finally managed to find her sense of sarcasm. "I've got work to do."

Digging her claws into the corner of the ledge, she leaped off in an Olympic style, spreading her wings and taking off to the scene unfolding nearby. The street was already abandoned, fearful cries of innocents trapped inside being drowned out by the sirens making up the perimeter.

* * *

"How many?" Fire Chief Leonard inquired to a nearby fire man. Their first priority was to empty out the building as the flames seemed to rise higher and higher.

"A young child, and an elderly couple are unaccounted for, sir."

"Right. Let's move it people! Before this gets out of control!"

"You and your men handle the flames, chief," someone suddenly called from above. Both Leonard and the younger man instinctively ducked when a dark shadow swooped overhead, entering the flaming inferno through an already broken window. "I'll handle the civilians."

While she wasn't the type to worry about anything, this was probably one of the intensest fires she'd ever experienced. Coughing slightly at the thick layer of smoke clouding against the ceiling, Shadow used one of her wings to cover her snout and plowed through. An elderly man had the privilege of being found first.

"My... my wife," he stammered, coughing as well because of the smoke. She moved quickly, acting as an anchor to help him stand.

"Don't worry sir," she comforted him as they eased over to the window. "Your wife will be fine, I promise."

The nearby wall suddenly exploded into a plume of green smoke, a loud scream ringing out. While most elders were in good health, if this man had a heart attack in her arms she would never be able to forgive herself. Shadow practically threw herself in between him and the debris raining down on them all, using her own body and wings as a shield.

"And that is a promise we both intend to keep."

She restrained herself from growling in civilian presence, glaring angrily at the Goblin as he entered. To her surprise, he held his hand out to the elder man, letting him find a secure place on his glider.

"Top floor: Camping supplies and one more victim~."

"On it!"

The decision was made to berate him for that sing-song voice later, running like an animal to get up the stairs, which was already falling apart. A floorboard even gave way under her hand, halting her pace for a few precious seconds before she could continue. While she didn't know if she could trust the Goblin to give her a well needed hand, now wasn't the time to question.

"Hello?" she called out as loudly as possible to get her voice to travel across the roar of the flames. "Kid! Are you in here?"

"Mom!?"

That was all she needed.

"Kid?"

"Over here!"

All her strength went into the blow, slamming her shoulder into a nearby door, making it fly off it's hinges with ease. The heat coming from inside the small apartment seemed to be worse than the heat outside. Least it gives a gal reason to be thankful for heat resistant scales but that protection wasn't going to last long under all this. Her amber orbs scoured the flame devoured room until they came upon a shaking blanket in the corner. Peeling the cover back, the small dark haired boy under it seemed to forget about everything happening around him as he only focused in on the creature in front of him.

"Whoa," he breathed in awe before being picked up by two scaled arms, plastic dinosaur toy and all.

"Yeah. Big sis Shadow isn't going to let anything happen to you kiddo."

* * *

It took roughly an hour but the fire was soon under control and the building itself a smouldering silhouette of what it once was. True to his word, both the elderly man and his wife were already safe and sound by the time she was outside again. Yet the looks of mother and child seemed to make her day, observing their relieved embrace from afar. Only when the boy pointed to her did everyone else take notice of the creature situated on the lamp post.

She didn't care, she didn't even care that eyewitnesses were snapping photo's of the winged lizard. A smile spread on her face, flicking a two fingered salute to the boy she saved. He mimicked her movement, shooting the same salute right back at her with a grin from ear to ear.

Her wings flared, unintensionally giving the photographers and even better shot before taking off skyward. Pete was probably wondering where in hell she was, considering how long that heroic act took. Then again, no one ever said that being a super hero was easy.

A shrill whistle cut through the wind in her ears, making her stop mid-glide and glance down. Sure enough, there stood the Goblin. Oddly, the look he gave her seemed to be less annoying than usual. It even seemed kind of cute. ...Wait, what?

Something dropped from his shoulder with an inaudible _thud_ , his gaze on her not wavering in the least. He pressed a button on his gauntlet, glider soon showing up at his side before he took off. Her brow quirked, swooping down and landing next to the item he'd dropped.

It was a duffel bag and by the looks of it, there was something in it too.

She zipped it open... and felt her jaw drop at the contents.

* * *

He crept through the window his superior always kept open for them, dropping down from his perch on the wall, tongue lashing back and forth. The tidbit of information he had tonight was especially juicy.

"You were right chief," he smiled to show rows of razor sharp teeth. "Looks like your son's gearing up to work with the dragon girl. Think he's taken a liking to her too."

"When can I leave!?" a screech suddenly echoed from across the room. "We want to kill, taste blood! Human blood! Delicious human blood!"

"Quite," the third occupant spoke, facing the black creature with the white spider. "You've done enough for today Venom."

"Carnage," he called out across the room. The beast reacted to his name, ooze covering his body beginning to writhe in anticipation. "Time to wreak some havoc!"

Carnage moved quickly, crashing through a window and moving away with rapid speed. A scream echoed into the night, his, and that of his first victim. He shook his head, smiling.

" **Hmhmhmhmhm**... **Nyahahahahahahaaa!** "


	8. Chapter 8

She yawned and stretched, tail flicking out from underneath the bed before she peaked her head out as well. No one was in the room, giving her the chance to crawl out and stretch to her full height. The delicious smell of pot roast soon reached her nose, making her mouth start to water. She quietly tip-toed down the stairs and peeked round the corner.

Sure enough, there stood the biggest plate of roasted pork with sides of vegetables and rice she'd ever seen. Lord please stop her stomach from growling. She quickly shook her head, looking around to see if Peter's Aunt May wasn't there.

It was probably his dinner she'd set out for him. Wait, why'd she set out a steaming plate of food for him this early? Or did she sleep in that late?

"Well? Aren't you going to dig in?"

A yelp accidentally left her throat, looking up to see an elderly women standing in the doorway to the living room. She looked pretty good for her estimated age, she had to admit. She just hated the fact that they had to be staring at each other in this awkward silence.

"It's alright deary," who she guessed to be Aunt May said cheerfully, as if she was talking to an old friend and not a homeless girl who showed up in her house overnight. "Peter already told me you're here."

"Wow... erm, thanks Ms. Parker," she smiled from ear to ear, taking her seat at the table and picking up her fork. The second she took a bite, it felt like she was in heaven. If the noises she was making didn't indicate that enough.

"Oh please, call me May. I'll be outside in the garden if you need me, dear."

A nod was all she could manage, far too entranced by the rice and pork taking up the brunt of her senses. Kicking Peter under the butt was next on the agenda. After she washed up and took a nice shower of course. Getting all the dust and who-knows-what else out of her hair would be a blessing to say the least.

Not to mention her scales. She couldn't even remember the last time she'd given them a good scrub.

* * *

"So... what's your new friend been up to?"

Peter was about to take a bite of his lunch when he brought it away from his mouth and looked up at Mary Jane. Word of how Shadow had roughed up Flash because of a mere insult had spread fast. For a guy who pretended to be tough, he was still riled up about the whole experience.

"Um... she's been okay," he answered hesitantly. "Letting her stay at my place for a while."

She smiled that foxy M.J. smirk, which worried him even more. Something was going through her head and he had that bad feeling that he wasn't going to like it.

"And no, she isn't my girlfriend," he added for conscious' sake, making her chuckle. If he had to be honest with himself, Shadow was a welcome distraction from Gwen and Harry. Being the unnecessary third wheel wasn't a fun experience and knowing a fourth wheel would have his back was better than anything. Well, who had Spidy's back, but hopefully that would change someday.

"I'd like to meet her someday though," she said, still smiling. "How about we catch a movie sometime? My treat."

"Or maybe just a hotdog? I'm really not seeing Shadow walking into a theater and not being antsy. If you know what I mean."

"Right. Don't worry Tiger, I think I can guess."

Shadow took up the brunt of the conversation until the bell rang, signaling that lunch was over. Yet, as soon as they were heading to class, they accidentally walked past Gwen and Harry. Oh, the awkwardness.

* * *

While she was still a bit concerned about the fact that Shadow was homeless, all her apprehensions disappeared about the supposedly short tempered teen as the day went by. They still had moments where they butted heads, like when she constantly insisted in helping her with a few chores. Only when Shadow explained that it was to repay her for her hospitality, did she finally give in.

"Shadow, are you sure you didn't want to stay home?" Aunt May asked her as they exited the grocery store. One small bag was gripped in her hand, while Shadow had two larger bags filled with groceries slung over her shoulders. Despite how heavy they seemed, she didn't seem to have any problem with them. "I can take care of myself."

"I don't doubt you Aunt May," Shadow smiled as they waited at the bus stop. "But you're putting food on the table for me, yourself and Peter. The least I can do is give a helping hand."

"Oh, that's quite kind of you dear."

The bus service was considerably slow this morning but she chalked that up to the usual traffic. After another minute of waiting, a soft humming began to sound from next to her. She smiled. It was true, she was a strong willed and strong hearted woman, but even she liked having someone to start up a conversation with every once and a while.

"Geez, what's up with the bus this morning?" another pedestrian asked annoyedly. Others seemed to be wondering the same thing. She may be apart of that group, but she didn't want to voice her opinion on something so mundane.

A loud **crash** suddenly seemed to answer everyone, shrieks and screams echoing into the resounding air. All attention, her's as well, was drawn to the end of the street, where most of the carnage seemed to be centered. She gasped at the sight.

"Hold these for me will you!"

She whirled round. Shadow was gone, the bags she was holding now piled into an unsuspecting business man's arms. The teen herself was no where to be found.

"Shadow!?"

* * *

If the taxi wasn't crushed from coushening his fall, it was probably crushed now. Rhino groaned aloud, in such a surprising amount of pain that it was getting impossible to fight. And the guy he was fighting still had a ton of fight in him.

"What's the matter Alex?" the monster purred. "You winded already?"

"Grrr... I'll show you who's winded!" O'hirn roared, pushing himself up and glaring the thing down with renewed rage. It looked so much like spider-man, but spider-man wasn't this brutal. His suit wasn't black and he wasn't this big and bulky either. Unless he's been going to the gym recently.

Head low and horn ready to impale, he charged with a bellow of anger. Despite this thing's size, it was surprisingly agile, jumping over him with ease. It's black webs stuck to his back, swinging him round once it's feet was on the asphalt and forcing him to plow into the street face first. Judging by the burning sensation running through his face, he had to guess that it was scraped raw.

"Come on O'hirn! You can do better than that!"

A scream suddenly echoed through the air, making his ears ring. He glared back, and felt his jaw drop.

Someone else had joined the fight, berating the thing with a stream of scorching fire. It was obviously more effective than the punches he'd been throwing, as it was scrambling to get away from it. Even weirder, it's black skin seemed to be practically melting away from it. Finally, the torrent of heat ended, ooze still dripping from it's body and nearly fusing to the concrete.

"A lot!" his old friend roared, landing a few feet away from the thing and glaring it down. "Especially since you don't have such a smart mouth now that you can't take the heat."

"Shads!"

She glared at him, taking her eyes from the thing she was trying to keep away from him. At first, it was just going to be another day of protecting civilians and kicking the teeth out of whoever threatened their lives in the first place. Now... now she wasn't sure who's teeth she wanted to kick out: O'hirn's or whatever the hell the thing was she's fighting.

"It looks like your face got run over by a lawnmower, O'hirn," she growled lowly. "Get your ass out of here."

He was about to open his mouth to interject when a black web suddenly stuck her arms to her sides. The next thing she knew, a black fist connected with her skull, sending her skidding a crater into the asphalt. Another web stuck itself to what was already constricting her, swinging her round and throwing her through an office window.

"Now," the black suited spider smirked, turning his attention to a fatigued Rhino. "Where were we?"

* * *

School couldn't end earlier, but just when he was about to head home and relax, his cellphone rang with an unlisted number. As soon as he answered it, he got the shock of life. Now he was swinging like a madman to get to downtown Manhattan.

What was Shadow even thinking!? Running off to fight some super villain and leave Aunt May to worry. Was she insane!? Something else he'll berate her for later. Until he stuck to a wall about a block away from the street, now literally turned on it's head.

"Venom."

The black symbiote with the white spider on his chest and back, had just thrown his best friend into a nearby building and was now advancing on Rhino. O'hirn was already down on one knee and panting heavily, looking like he'd been run over by a truck. Only problem was that there was no truck in this city that could run him over. He was more likely to steamroller it and not the other way round.

"Now, where were we?" Venom crooned as he casually strolled over to Rhino. Spidey shook his head, webbing the black monstrosity's jaws shut but he tore it off with ease. Hopping off his perch, he stuck to a taxi's roof and glared at Venom through his mask.

"Where's Shadow?" he snarled darkly. "I know she's here Brock, so don't even think about lying to me!"

A grin spread across his face, turning his attention away from Rhino and glaring at his red and blue rival. He chuckled darkly, stepping towards him.

"Hehehe... wouldn't you like to- **Grargh!** "

"Spidey!"

Looking up from the cringing symbiote, after being struck by a massive fireball, he finally spotted Shadow getting to her feet from what was left of an office. After tearing what was left of a black web from her arm, she glared down at Venom with eyes that seemed to be possessed. He screamed, throwing the same glare back, his suit flaring around him in anger and discomfort. Her wings flared open and took off, landing next to Spider-man.

"Don't worry about me, I'm fine," she assured, forcing a smile onto her face to prove her point. "Now, who the hell is this guy?"

"Venom..." he practically spat the name. "One of the worst. Although, why's O'hirn in this mess?"

"Speak... fer ya'selves," the behemoth in question managed to pant. Venom simply laughed, having recovered from the she-dragon's assault and now reigniting his glare at the duo.

"He's 'competition'. And competition, shouldn't exist!"

"Competition for what, Eddie!?" the Wall-crawler snarled, now livid. "Competition in trying to get rid of me!? Why should he be dragged into this, this was between you and me from the beginning!"

Venom snarled.

"Eddie Brock doesn't exist anymore!" he practically screamed at the top of his lungs. "We're Venom! We will always be Venom!"

Shadow quirked a brow. This guy belonged in Ravencroft for all she knew, not out on the street. Begs the question of why he's here in the first place. To eliminate O'hirn, his competition. If only she knew what that competition was for. Hopping over the car Spider-man stood on, she quickly positioned herself under his arm and helped him stand.

God help her, he was heavy.

"Spidey! You take care of..."

She glanced at the razor toothed monster, turning back to Spider-man.

"Whatever he is. I'll keep needle-nose out of trouble."

"Hey!" O'hirn shouted, but was literally dragged to his feet before he could interject further. He glanced up at her but the look in her eyes obviously told him he should just shut-up.

* * *

Right now, he was chastising himself for letting Shadow run off.

Spider-man crashed through a window, Venom following right behind him. Two blows crashed into the floor before he could stop dodging and land his own strike. Yet the symbiote seemed to be absorbing the force, letting Eddie recover easily and continue the assault. Again he found himself soaring out a window and crashing into the asphalt, leaving a crater the size of a car.

"Argh, okay. I hope Shadow comes back soon."

* * *

"What're ya doin ere kid?" O'hirn asked hoarsely. At least he realized that she was having a hard time, using whatever strength he had left to not lean on her too much. Even though it wasn't helping in the least. "Thought ya were busy savin cats from a tree.

"O'hirn," she hissed lowly. "Do me a favor and zip it!"

They finally managed to get far enough from the battle between the two spiders to not be drawn back into it. A sigh of relief left her throat when she was finally able to get him off her shoulder, plopping down on the concrete right next to him. One look at anyone standing nearby and they knew that there was no her way, only the highway.

"I think we'll be okay here for a little while."

"Not quite," a voice that sounded far more gritty than the Goblin's suddenly spoke above their heads. It practically sent chills up her spine. The humming of an engine above their heads made her even more worried. Glancing at O'hirn, she immediately took notice of his dropped jaw, the 'eh' word dragging from his mouth.

She finally forced herself to look up as well. There stood a gold skinned version of the maniac she was actually beginning to like. A purple cloak billowed out behind him, that dumb ass grin on his face making her more and more agitated. Shaking her head, she soon bowed it in annoyance.

"Fuck me... this day just gets better and better."

* * *

He could repeat the word 'no' a thousand times over in his head, it wasn't going to change anything. Down below was a far more monstrous version of himself, standing in front of the she-dragon and the petty crook turned super villain she was trying to protect. He could already hear her growling.

"My day's been bad enough as is," she growled at him. "If you want to make it worse, by all means."

"Oh believe me sweetie," he purred, making her ready to raise a fist. "I can make all this go away, so as long as you hand your little friend over."

All that earned him was a fireball aimed for the face, if he didn't rear his glider back and used it as a shield. A roar shook the mortar and brick of surrounding buildings before she lunged for him, claws ready to slice into skin and bone. Her aim was dead on, both of them crashing into the street. He harshly kicked her off, a pumpkin bomb sending her flying by another few feet.

At least their relationship wasn't as turbulent as they made it out to be, as Rhino had shot up, now charging like a raging bull towards the one who tried to hurt his friend in the first place. The second goblin only smirked, pressing a button on his gauntlet to summon his own glider. He sidestepped Rhino with ease, letting the grey skinned thug be thrown forward instead by his glider.

Enough looking on, it's time to act.

* * *

She groaned loudly, pushing against the asphalt that scaved her back to get back to her feet, but her center of gravity was off and she was forced to kneel. Taking a deep breath, she finally forced herself up. O'hirn had put his last ounce of strength into that last advance and now laid motionless out in the street. It was just her and this mockery of the Goblin, who stood a few feet in front of her with a triumphant smirk.

"Are you done yet, little girl?"

She snarled at him fiercely, baring her teeth and fangs and letting her wings unfurl, making herself look bigger than she actually was. He simply sneered at this but the confidence seemed to drain from his face when they both heard a familiar beeping noise. Her eyes widened, immediately folding her wings over her face.

 **Bang!**

A scream ripped through the air. Thankfully, the bomb that went off wasn't meant for her, sending the knock-off flying into a nearby alleyway. Lowering her shield, she looked up to see the amount of damage it'd caused. She caught movement out of the corner of her eye... and felt herself smile for the first time in roughly an hour.

"Miss me, Shady?" the one true Goblin asked with that usual mock in his voice. It wasn't meant to offend anyone and it didn't annoy her as much as it usually did. At the moment, she was simply relieved that she wasn't alone in this anymore.

"Gobby," she smiled, flapping the dust off her wings. "Do me a favor and zip it."

Suddenly, a roar of rage startled them both. Mock goblin flew from the alley on his glider, landing a firm punch in the Goblin's face and throwing him into a nearby building. A sphere of fire narrowly missed him, letting the edge of his cloak catch on fire as he ascended at an alarming speed. Growling, her wings unfurled and she took off after him but was stopped by the Green Goblin's hand.

"Ah-ah-ah, you still have a friend to help don't you?"

Following his index finger, she remembered the unconscious Rhino still lying in the middle of the street. Her eyes narrowed as she glared back at him but decided that now wasn't the time to argue.

"Fine," she hissed. They split up, the Green Goblin taking off after his gold skinned counterpart and Shadow swooping down to help O'hirn. Yet the moment her clawed feet touched the ground next to him, glass shattering above her head made her look up, only to be flattened against the street by a falling Spider-man. She yelped but roughly shoved him off in annoyance.

* * *

"What the hell!?" who he recognized to be Shadow roared above his head, making the ringing in his ears worse. Eddie was being particularly viscous today, as if he was trying to kill him this time around. All his battered body could manage was a point upwards. Next thing he knew, he was practically yanked up by his shoulders and out of the way of something crashing into the concrete.

He shook his head roughly, getting out of her grip and back on his feet, both of them glaring at those blank white eyes staring them down. While he obviously wasn't going to stand a chance against this guy, maybe a two vs. one battle would yield better results. Yet before either of them could make a move, the symbiote suddenly chuckled, turning round and looking down at an unconscious Rhino.

"Hope you don't mind, but I've still got a Rhino to pouch!"

"No!" Peter exclaimed, shooting two webs at it's back and stopping it's advance. Shadow now stood behind him, grabbing hold of both his wrists. Venom roared, whirling round on them in anger. Their strength combined, they pulled as hard as they could, forcing it to stumble forward. Both advanced on him at once, both landing a firm punch into the creature's jaw, sending him flying.

The symbiote snarled, getting back to it's feet and glaring them down, but before he could advance again, a voice roared above their heads.

"Enough Venom!" a man dressed for Halloween stopped to hover above them. "We've wasted enough time here!"

Venom regarded the man, glaring back at the duo with hatred in his eyes. A black web then stuck itself to a nearby building. The symbiote left the scene, masked man leading the way. Spidey looked round at his scaled friend, who seemed just as confused as he was.

What the hell was going on here!?


	9. Chapter 9

It'd probably taken them a good two hours to literally drag O'hirn to a place where no one would notice a giant rhinoceros in the middle of New York. Spidey didn't make any sarcastic comments about the crazy day they've been having. Only time he opened his mouth was to complain about his back and O'hirn's weight. She didn't speak the entire way but as soon as they found a place to set him down, she keeled over and stayed there for another five minutes.

"Wake up Alex!" she roared at the top of her lungs, swinging her foot forward to let it collide with his shoulder. She immediately regretted it, hissing loudly when she felt the pain rush up her leg. Stomping her foot a few times to get rid of the tingling sensation, she plopped herself down on the behemoth's chest in frustration. Until her amber orbs flicked to the side.

"Not. a. word."

"Gobby's day hasn't gone any better, you know," the Green Goblin commented, only to duck for a fury laced fireball. They looked each other in the eye, and burst into a fit of laughter. True, this day was utter crap, for a lack of better words. At least being in the company of close friends made it a bit better than what it could've be.

"Is my little she-dragon alright?"

"Yeah," she sighed, crossing her arms on her knees and looking at the now sleeping Rhino. "Just worried about a close friend."

A slight pressure found itself on her shoulder, and when she looked up, she felt her heart in her throat. The Goblin now stood right next to her, his glider set down a few feet away from them. His hand rested on her shoulder, a genuine smile on his masked face instead of that aggravating smirk. She smiled slightly, ducking her head down to hide the fact that half her face was bright red.

Why can't these feelings just go to hell!?

"Shads!" Spidey suddenly called. Goblin stiffened, looking up in what seemed like fear, just as the wall-crawler swung in. "Aunt May is going to kill you when we get-"

He stopped dead in his path, nearly loosing his footing when he saw them. The Goblin suddenly took his hand from her shoulder, backing away with his hands up in defense. Shadow got up from her perch, finding herself in the middle of this crazy stand-off. Even though she didn't have a clue about what was going on.

"What the...!?"

"I- I can explain!"

"Yeah! Explain how you can still be alive!"

"Guys."

"I saw you die that day Osborn! I saw you plummet into that trap built to kill **me**! ...I guess I've been waiting for this to happen but why are you here now!?"

* * *

Green Goblin opened his mouth to say something but they both ducked down on instincts when an explosion rung in their ears behind them. They both looked up in surprise, only to see a scorching hole in the wall above their heads. Flames still trickled from some patches in the blackened wood. They looked behind them and felt their hearts stop.

Shadow stood there, glaring at them, eyes glowing amber with anger and malice, hand stretched out and smoke trailing from it. She took a deep breath, and let it out again. As soon as she blinked, her eyes went back to the normal human iris it usually was when she wasn't transformed. Now, they were narrowed in such a way that if looks could kill, they'd both be dead on the floor.

"K... now that I've got your attention... **what in the blue hell are you dumb asses talking about!?** "

Peter flinched, seeing the she-dragon clenching her teeth, glare becoming worse by the second. He looked back at the Goblin, making him flinch as well. His supposed to be dead enemy finally sighed before doing something completely unexpected. He took off his mask. Their combined glares softened to the point they were staring.

Harry Osborn looked up at them both, the mask of the Green Goblin clenched in his hand.

"The Green Goblin is alive, because he needs your help."

* * *

Today did not go as planned.

Venom was meant to lure Alexander O'hirn, the she-dragon and Spider-man out into the open. Eddie Brock would have the chance to end the hero while he himself would kill Alexander and Shadow. Three birds with two stones. Yet everything went south when the Green Goblin showed his face. Eight months after his supposed 'death'.

"Bum-mer," Carnage hissed as he entered the office. "You're in the doghouse now, dad."

"Shut up!" Venom snarled back. The black symbiote sat in front of the oak desk, glaring down his red kin stuck to the wall. Their master held up his hand, signaling them both to be silent. He made eye contact with Carnage, signaling him to speak.

"Two more people in the morgue. Two more victims of the Carnage Killer.~"

He let out an insane giggle, shoulders shaking as he did so. Venom seemed to roll his eyes, not impressed in the least. Romann however smiled. At least one of his plans were running smoothly.

* * *

Harry had done the liberty of changing into his everyday clothes and calling an Oscorp issued truck to pick up O'hirn. She still couldn't believe that he had a story made up for everything. Her foot was already in the bed of the truck when Spidey suddenly reminded her of something they still had to face.

"We, are in _sooo_ much trouble," Peter stated the obvious as they trudged through the back door. She couldn't really stop herself from rolling her amber eyes skyward. He meant that **she** was in so much trouble. Days like this made her curse her 'act first ask questions later' attitude.

"At least you had the decency to call Peter."

The teen in question froze. She tilted her head back, chewing on her lip before meeting the bespectacled woman's glare. Said glare proved to be far worse than O'hirn's, who was at least twice her size. She was a head taller than this lady and she was scaring her unlike any super villain would. Where's the logic in that?

"I have nothing to say," she admitted, folding her hands behind her back and bowing her head. "Let the scolding begin."

Feeling the woman's gentle hand on her arm, she looked up. May had sat down across from her, demeanor having relaxed considerably. A smile had spread on her face, the gentle one she'd seen this morning when she offered her her first decent meal in months. If only she knew what went on in that woman's head.

"You're worried about your friend, aren't you?"

"Which friend?" Peter interjected this time. He leaned against the kitchen sink with his arms crossed over his chest. Shadow herself was wondering the same thing.

"That rhinoceros person. He isn't a gentleman in the least, but I guess you've learned how to deal with those types."

" **What!?** "

Both teens were dumbstruck. Shadow accidentally dug her heels into the floor so harshly that she fell back chair and all. She soon scrambled to get back up, her best friend at her side to help her up. Aunt May was a bit startled at first but began to giggle when she saw the looks on their faces.

"I-... er-... ehm-... what makes you think he's a friend of her's Aunt May?" Peter asked, bewildered, holding her under her arms while she was trying to find a place to hang on to. She gave up after roughly a minute, growling for him to pull the chair out from under her so she could get up without hurting herself. She didn't mean for a profanity to slip into her sentence but it just did. Aunt May didn't seem to notice.

"Oh please! I wasn't born yesterday dear," May joked as Shadow finally managed to get back to her feet. "I saw her reaction to this morning. It isn't that hard to count to four."

The incompetent noises Peter began to make didn't interest her. How badly she wanted to scorch something, or someone at the moment. Especially 'Venom'. Just wait until she dug her claws into him...

"Well," Shadow muttered under her breath. She wasn't about to rub her back because it was still sore from this morning. "Now that that's over and done with, is it alright if I go see if he's alright?"

"Oh, alright deary. But first, would you two like a slice of Banana Cream pie?"

* * *

Oscorp scientists have done an extensive check-up on Rhino and so far, all they could tell was that he was completely exausted. That early morning battle with the black symbiote did wonders for him, sarcasm intended. A lot of rest and a lot of water and he'll be back on his massive feet in no time. Hopefully Shadow will be more than relieved.

"The Carnage Killer?" a familiar, though slightly deepened voice asked from above, though the question wasn't directed at him. Harry glanced up at the glass ceiling to see Spider-man and his winged companion dropping down from one of the panes he instructed to be left open.

"I know right. Three victims in two days. It's insane."

"And the first serial killer since Kletus Cassady," he chipped in with a small smile. "Whoever's doing this, belongs at Ravencroft Mental Hospital with him."

"Oh Lord no!" Spidey threw his hands up in the air. "Then they both escape and cause twice the amount of carnage."

Shadow rolled her eyes skyward, face palming once she was back to human form. He just wanted to let his smile widen at seeing that she was wearing the clothes he'd given to her the night after that fire. Yet her attention shifted to O'hirn once she noticed him, kneeling at his side to get a closer look.

"He'll be okay," Harry informed her. "Couple days of sleep, lots of water, and he'll be up and running in no time."

Her shoulders slumped instantly, breathing a sigh of relief. Then he noticed her squint. Something was starting to bother her and she was about to tell them what it was.

"Wait," she began, getting up from next to her old friend. "If Alex was attacked today, then where's Flint?"

He and Spidey glanced at each other.

"He and O'hirn are almost always with each other. If one of them is alone, something's obviously happened to the other."

A loud groan suddenly sounded beside the three, making them whirl round in surprise. Alex tossed his head back and forth, groaning and moaning constantly. Shadow looked at himself and Spider-man before kneeling back down beside the man.

"Alex. Alex!" she called him, patting the side of his face.

"Rrrrm... _Fliiint_... bat freak took Flint..."

Bat freak?

* * *

No one seemed to care more for Needle-nose, besides Sandy, than Shadow. According to Harry, she's been up all morning, going from checking on O'hirn to flying about a mile away from Oscorp's main laboratory before circling back. At the moment, she was probably turning their old base on it's head looking for any signs of Marko.

Spidey swung from building to building, stopping every once and a while to scan the city below for any signs of disturbance. So far, only things he's found was a vulture's nest (the bird not the super villain), a rooftop garden and two lovers who found sunbathing at the beginning of spring romantic. The latter he would love to unsee.

He's been running through every single scenario since the second he left Oscorp the night before. The worst of it all was that Sandy may have become a victim of this Carnage Killer. If a serial killer was smart enough to figure out how to kill a man made out of silicon.

Stopping by The Bugle proved most informative, and not in a good way. Turns out that whoever it was, was really, **really** , screwed up in the noggin. All seven of his victims were brutally attacked and mutillated beyond recognision, so much so that even the most hardened of officers lost their lunch. An even bigger problem was he fact that these killings seemed to be random.

"Anything?" the Goblin called in through the ear piece he'd given them both. Shadow of course got her's earlier than he did so he had to make a stop at the lab before heading out. Seemed as if he was being completely ignored by both of them.

"Jack squat," he groaned under his breath. "Shadow call in yet? I haven't seen her all day."

"Unfortunately, no. She hasn't been herself recently."

Spider-man frowned behind his mask. Then he remembered her outburst that night when she faced the Enforcers for the first time. She told him that she's been trying to tame her temper since then but something didn't seem right. No doubt that she was starting to realize it too.

"Not that I like making small talk with my worst enemy, but, has she said anything about her past?"

Gobby laughed loudly, nearly bursting his ear drum.

"What makes you think, she'll be discussing her childhood with someone like the Goblin?"

"Eh," Spidey mentally shrugged. "Just because you revealed yourself to her first. For obvious reasons, I'll admit."

The com line went silent. He gave up after a short while and decided to perch on a nearby roof to give his arms some downtime. For the entire month they'd known each other so far, she hadn't mentioned anything about it. Then again, her temper might just be a result of her powers, being a fire dragon and all.

But if her temper was going out of control, would it mean something's happening with her powers too?

A black blur suddenly appeared out of the corner of his eye. Without even thinking, he swung off in hot pursuit.

* * *

Her tail swung back and shattered an abandoned piece of furniture into a million shards. Glancing back at the wreckage, she growled lowly, grabbing her head in her claws.

Why was her temper getting away from her like this?

In all the years of living on the streets, it's never gone haywire like this before. Then again, she's never been caught up in a plot as big as this one before. It could just be the stress of being a wannabe superhero weighing down in on her. She didn't even bother trying to battle the fog clouding her memory.

Shaking her head, she finally sighed in defeat, deciding to not waste time and search the rest of the place. Even if it felt like she's been over this place twice.

A crash suddenly echoed from the walls, making her eyes widen immediately and snap to attention. Something obviously wasn't very bothered with keeping it's presence unknown. The echo bouncing from the walls made it hard to realize which way the intruder was but turning her back soon proved to be the worst idea she'd ever had.

Before she knew it, the worst burning sensation rushed through her back, the roar shredding from her throat breaking a window. She spun round but was simply back handed through a nearby wall. Forcing herself into a slight sitting position, something warm and sticky drew her hand to her face.

Blood. Her blood.

She looked down and felt her eyes widen. The burn she felt before was her back literally being cut open by the demon that now stood before her. While she's never seen a movie before, this thing was definitely something out of a horror movie.

It glared down at her with a shark toothed grin, red suit writhing around it's body as if it was alive. Her blood dripped from it's claws before said claws suddenly turned into an axe. She grit her teeth, looking into those white fear inducing eyes. Did Venom get an upgrade or something?

"Ready to die Scales?" he sneered, raising his axe high.


End file.
